Deadline Supernova
by AriadneInLove
Summary: Jack and Sam know every time they step through that gate is a taunt on death, and do so valiantly. But when the world melts away and they are left alone in a galaxy, bleeding, wounded, dying… there is no reason to hide. And feelings erupt.
1. The Exodus

**DEADLINE SUPERNOVA**

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**DISCLAIMER:** Don't own SG-1 or any of its characters.

**SUMMARY:** For 7 years, SG-1 has faced unimaginable odds. To Sam, the rules of her command are the words of God, even after they forbid her feelings for her commanding officer. For these 7 years, Jack and Sam have tried to keep their emotions hidden, to little avail. And though both know every time they step through that gate is a taunt on death, they do so valiantly. But when the world melts away and they are left alone in a galaxy, bleeding, wounded, dying… there is no reason to hide. And feelings erupt.

**IMPORTANT NOTE:** This story is divided in two sections, before and after the incident, meaning it jumps around in the timeline. The events after are in _italics_. The events before it are in regular text and are more crucial to the plot.

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_The room slowly lit as the power of the sun surrounded her. Sam's wounds had formed a small circular puddle of blood around her by the time Jack came running in, the door melting shut behind him. He slid down by her side, gasping to catch his breath. _

_If it had been any other person dying on the floor, he would have thought something sarcastic or witty to ease the moment like he was getting to old for this or that someone should really fix the air conditioning. But it was Sam. He had one marquee of consciousness flashing in front of his eyes, overwhelming his convictions: to save her, to comfort her, be it the last time. Despite the blood, he tried to sit her up, knowing it was a foolish move in her condition but wanting desperately to hold her. _

"_Carter!" he called out. "Carter, wake up. Come on, baby. Open your eyes."_

_The walls began to break and crackle under the heat of the sun's revenge outside. Even as it died, it took them with it as a final mock. _

_Sam tried to respond but it was as if she was drowning. She gasped out, her deep blue eyes begging him to help her but it was useless. She clawed at his chest. "Jack," she managed, swallowing the taste of coagulating defeat. "Jack, it's over."_

_He knew it was serious if she was disregarding protocol and rank. Sam had never given up, even when presented with worse odds. He knew she had lost hope of escaping and now he would go with her. _

_He looked around at the room, at the enclosing walls. They were trapped in an orb, an Ancient dome, and yet he felt no heat other than that he felt when she was close. She was so cold herself. _

"_Sam, don't worry. They're coming for us."_

"_You can't… lie… to me now," she said between gasps. "No one is coming. We're the last people in the entire galaxy, Jack. The only thing keeping us from burning with them is this place. Look around. It's dying too."_

"_No, no," he said with a false smile. "It'll be fine. The sun will stop exploding and we'll just repaint. Maybe add a little furniture, a little kitchen nook."_

_She choked as she went to laugh. What was most disconcerting was that she knew she was minutes from death and yet no matter her wounds, she could feel no pain so long as he held her as he did, resting her against his knee, hovering over her so closely she could kiss him. At the thought of him, of them, she began to cry. Death did not frighten her. Losing him did, as it always had. _

"_Jack, there's something I want to tell you…"_

"_No! We're going to be fine."_

_She grew angry. "NO! Give me my goodbye! This is the end, Jack! It stops here! We're alone. We can't run. There's nothing outside this room! It's just you and me. It's always been you and me."_

"_Sam, I can't--"_

_She tightened her grip on his arm and shed another stream of tears. The blood kept spreading even as her heart slowed. The heat began to enter through the miniscule cracks in the metal dome. _

"_I just want you to know… I can think of no better way to die than in your company…" she said and gasped, feeling the pain of her injuries surge through as if God had suddenly taken to magnifying glasses and her chest was the ant. The pressure started and she thought her ribs were cracking. Every sensation became heightened, even the feel of his fingers, wrapping themselves around her hand. She hadn't noticed it before, the gentleness of his touch despite all the pain around her. _

"_Sam, I--"_

_She interrupted, breathing ever more a task. "And I want… to say… I only regret… waiting until… until now… to tell you…"_

"_I love you too, Sam," he said softly, leaning in closer so she could feel his breath on her lips as he spoke. "And there's no regret. You're what's kept me alive this long. Sam, knowing your smile waited for me on the other side of that gate… it's the only reason I kept going."_

_He drew closer and his bottom lip brushed hers. The walls of the dome finally gave and a stream of light blinded him. He closed his eyes tight and brought her to his chest, holding on for dear life._

_But nothing happened._

_The light did not burn. _

_He opened his eyes to the sight of Sam's hair, her head against his chest. Her hand had gone limp atop the puddle of blood beside her. _

_He didn't care to see they were in the middle of the control room of the Prometheus. He didn't care the entire staff had gathered around them, watching this moment of intimacy. He didn't care the light that struck him had been an Asgard beam and they were safe in the company of friends… He didn't care he was crying. _

_The rest became a blur. Medical personnel came running in and pushed him aside on the floor. There were voices. Daniel was yelling something, his hand on Jack's shoulder. Neither would remember what was said. Others came to help him but he just watched Sam's body be taken away to the infirmary. _

_He felt adrenaline spike his blood and went to get up to run after her. He refused to leave her. But Daniel and Teal'c pulled him back. _

_He wiped the sweat from his brow only to spread her blood over his face. He turned to Daniel, who seemed to feel his pain as Daniel always did. Even Teal'c seemed to mourn. _

_Daniel hugged him but Jack was hysterical. "It was my fault!" he screamed. "I killed her! They're _all_ dead. It was my fault!"_

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**PART ONE: The Exodus**

It had begun a week before, the death of the sun of Riles. It was a simple, uninhabited solar system with a single gas giant. The Tok'ra had sent word that it was about to collapse and Sam was the first to stress the importance of the event.

Jack didn't see why they had to drag themselves to the middle of nowhere just to jot down some numbers. They had seen suns blow up before, but there was something special about this solar system.

On the barren planet, there sat an orb about half the size of the SGC. It was metallic, obviously man-made, and hollow as if it held something precious inside. Jack loved how Sam had described it in the briefing. It was a "jewelry box full of treasure" and she was dying to open it. Maybe that should have been a warning but Jack did not like to overanalyze.

"How are we going to get inside?" Daniel asked.

"We'll use rings. The only problem is the sun is decaying fast. We got news of it too late. I've begun calculating the expansion rate of the explosion. We have to get in, see what's up, and get back out before the deadline I've set or the cargo ship's engines won't be able to escape the blast," Sam explained, holding onto the clicker to the projector.

"Where's _Prometheus_? Why can't we take it instead if it's faster?" Jack asked.

"It's somewhere in the Halcyon Galaxy. It'll be back in a few days but I need as much time as possible to check my readings, explore the orb, do my fun stuff with the vibrating gizmos…"

Jack looked up from doodling on his notepad, suddenly enthused. "I don't think you've ever said anything sexier or more grammatically incorrect all the time I've known you," he joked.

They all looked at him like he had suddenly said something inappropriate but Sam just blushed and smiled and nudged it off. She was getting fantastic at denying him. Even when the meeting resumed, Daniel still raised an eyebrow in Jack's direction, shooting him disapproving looks and nods. Teal'c raised an eyebrow as well but it was hard to tell at whom, or what, and it quickly dashed.

Hammond stood up at the end of the briefing as if it was just another routine search party. "So it's set. Major, get your equipment ready. You leave at 0700."

And it was done.

They set out promptly at 0740 because Jack couldn't find his gun. It was silly to lose a gun, especially one a quarter his size, but it was bound to happen from time to time. And of course it had to be _his_ gun. No other would do. Sam wondered if he did it just to bother her, knowing they were on deadline.

She was waiting at the base of the ramp when he came into the 'Gate room. Daniel and Teal'c were already on the planet where the cargo ship waited to take them to Riles. She had her arms crossed and looked like he'd just stolen her patents to the atom bomb.

He lifted up the gun in triumph and made a small apologetic smirk before lowering his head in shame and walking up the ramp.

"Where was it?" she asked.

"Armory. It was under the Kevlar vests for Anubis' guys, right next to that photo of you last Christmas. Remember that?" She opened her eyes wide in fear. It was one of those moments he'd never let her live down. Alcohol was involved. "Let's drop the issue with the gun before we start getting nostalgic," he warned.

They walked to the grassy hill where Daniel, Teal'c, and SG-14 waited. Why they'd been stuck with SG-14, she didn't know. It was made up of lazy new personnel who preferred to be home watching the football game than a sun explode, and were led by Major Barry who was in his 50s and had no time for "shenanigans," as he loved to say. It made Sam giggle, which entertained Jack immensely. He loved to mock it when the Major wasn't in the room.

He noticed they had grown closer as a team in the last months or so. After the destruction of the beta site, he and Sam had developed a sort of mutual gratuity. Now more than ever, she felt indebted to him. He wanted more than anything to make her feel what he felt, that they had grown beyond this awkwardness. Even as the team began to behave ever so informal, she kept up her defenses. It was horrible on him. Years later, he had become numb to it, accustomed, and he _hated_ it.

"We ready?" Daniel asked. Sam and Jack snapped out of their wandering minds. Sam suddenly scurried to check on the equipment. If she delved too long in thoughts of Jack, who knows what she might do.

Inside the cargo ship, Jack took his usual seat which he lovingly called The Supreme Throne of the Supreme Overlord. Sam rolled her eyes but she knew it was intended to mock the Goa'uld. She didn't understand how he could still mock them after all they'd seen. It helped her sleep at night knowing she was doing something about it.

But lately, she wasn't even sleeping anymore. The guys could tell but hadn't mentioned anything to her just yet. Once it got serious, they'd hold a sort of intervention the way they did after Teal'c got addicted to jelly-filled donuts and Daniel wouldn't stop screaming at the History Channel. Her problem they knew was serious. It had started just after the incident at the alpha site.

"So how long before we reach the Sun of Riles?" Teal'c asked, setting down a large load of equipment from the ring bay.

Sam helped some of the SG-14 newbies with their load and answered, "Two days."

Jack jumped off his Supreme Throne and clapped his hands together. "Beeeeautiful. Who's up for some Monopoly? Poker? Checkers? Anyone?"

Nobody took any notice and kept on moving equipment and opening boxes of provisions. Daniel walked past Jack with a stack of books and gave him a dismissive look and a subtle shake of the head.

He groaned and said, "It's going to be a _long_ night."

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"_We didn't have enough time," Jack said. His hand was shaking. He stared at it on his lap as he spoke. It made Daniel sick. He had never seen him this broken, even when confronted with torture and death. _

_They had taken Sam to surgery. There was still hope. But every bit of Jack's soul could feel her loss. _

_They made him wait, taking him to a bed in the infirmary. He sat on the edge like a small child waiting for his lollipop, if he behaved. They'd had to sedate him. Daniel sat in the bed next to him, watching him with watery eyes. Teal'c stood at the door to make sure he didn't leave. It was hard to get past a man of Teal'c size, with all bones intact. _

"_Jack… why?" Daniel asked. _

_Jack stopped shaking and looked up at him slowly. The question had hurt. "I warned her. I knew he was coming. But she had to make sure you could leave, and I couldn't leave without her."_

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The night was not long at all. They gathered around in a circle on the floor around the rings, lazily telling old war stories. Or, in Daniel's case, not. Major Barry was extremely fond of his war record. Most of his stories were filled with gore and always reinforced his belief in a proper chain of command.

In fact, he slammed his right fist into his left palm at every word for emphasis. "Proper. Chain. Of. Command!"

Jack, Sam, and Daniel snuck glances at each other and found they were all stifling giggles. SG-14 looked up at Barry like star-struck students. They didn't have enough cynicism yet. It was a trait that grew with experience.

There was a small moment of comfortable silence. SG-1 hadn't been paying attention so they didn't notice that Barry had stopped talking. He grew very pensive, as if he was contemplating an old mission. Jack didn't like the major very much. He was getting that Spidey-sense he got around people sometimes.

He looked at him over the rim of his beer bottle. He'd managed to sneak them aboard, 10 six-packs. Daniel was waiting till he accused him of being a nerd. Now he could always respond by calling him a mean drunk. But then Sam might get involved, especially after last Christmas. She was a disoriented sort of drunk that could hardly walk to the car by herself without singing Nick-at-Nite showtunes. Daniel was the type to pee in public places without noticing, and Teal'c usually drove them all home, or the nearest hospital. Sam looked around with a smile. She knew they were all thinking of those moments. It seemed like they were all, in their hearts, already saying goodbye as if they knew this was one of the last good moments they'd ever have.

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_Frasier walked in some hours later, still in scrubs. Jack was already asleep. They'd cured and bathed him. He was covered in dust from burning debris. Daniel jumped up off the edge of the bed. Jack had been lucky enough to get sedated. He wished he couldn't feel anything right now. It was hurting too much. It had never been like this. _

"_Well?" he asked. _

_Janet looked at him with teary eyes and shook her head. She started crying hysterically, suddenly, catching him by surprise. Teal'c helped hold her up but she too had seen too much and the image of Sam on that table was never going to wash away. _

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**To be continued…**

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	2. Anniversary

**PART TWO: Anniversary**

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**Author's Note: _Pay attention to the background stories and how they relate to the people's state of mind. There's a big hint there. It gets fluffy, for all you lovebirds. And, I hope I don't need to warn you about double meanings and those sorts of things. They're all over and you usually don't realize it till it's biting you in the arse. I'm also not taking off the anonymous review status for this story but if you do review, please sign in so I can reply with hints for the next chapter and more. _**

_**Thank you and enjoy.**_

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"Major, why'd you come back?" one of the newbies asked. Jack looked up at this. Sam noticed it but Danny was still laughing with Sergeant Marks and Teal'c.

"Come back?" Sam asked him, just to be sure.

"From retirement," Major Barry responded, solemnly but trying to remain optimistic. "My wife recently passed away. There was no reason for me to be home. I'm too young anyway."

Sam smiled, then continued. He seemed well enough to talk about it so it couldn't have been recent. "I'm sorry for your loss… How long had you been married?"

"25 years, since high school. Then one day, I come home and a burglar's ransacked the place and she's lying dead on the kitchen floor with a knife in her chest." He said it too easily. Either he was heartless or numb. Nobody gets over something like that so quickly.

Two lieutenants excused themselves after that and drunkenly swaggered towards their corner of floor. It'd gotten late, as far as late could get in an eternal night.

The conversation got much more serious. Barry spread the melancholy air to every corner of the cargo bay. After his wife, the stories turned to the horrors he'd seen. Jack threw in some of his own, to which all listened intently. SG-1 had heard most of them but every time he told them, he did so with such enthusiasm that it was hard not to imagine every gory detail all over again.

More and more went to bed, even the downtrodden Major and Teal'c. Daniel, Jack, and Sam were last. Sam was telling a story about her Blackhawk crashing into the middle of a highway.

"Where was this?" Daniel asked.

Sam smiled. "I can neither confirm nor deny I was ever in Mexico."

They laughed. Sam must have taken a look at Jack because she blushed ever so slightly. Daniel took it as incentive to leave and excused himself. Sam was about to get up when her hand brushed Jack's and he began a completely different conversation.

"So explain to me this whole supernova thing again," he said, with glossy eyes. She knew he was quite tired. They all were. Two days before, they'd had a meet-and-greet with some Rhylonian diplomats. They'd ended up in a jail cell, but Jack was too used to being behind bars. He felt jailed even as they spoke.

"When a sun gets too old and too heavy, it folds upon itself and explodes. After that, sometimes, there's a chance of a black hole, which we've experienced before," she explained, moving so her back rested on the bay wall.

He made a facial gesture of understanding. "I _really_ hate black holes."

She smiled. "I'm sure so does every living thing in its path, sir."

He raised an eyebrow. There was a moment of silence. She stared at her hands. They shook as if cold. "Major, I…"

"I know sir."

"No. You couldn't possibly know--"

"Sir… I know."

He smiled, staring at his boots. "Do you still have that red dress? The one with the little bow in the back?"

She was surprised he remembered. "Yea," she said softly.

"I know it'll be too late but maybe as a late anniversary, we could go out to dinner," he asked.

She gulped silently. "I'd like that."

He smiled even brighter, staring like an amazed child at his boots. "Wear the red dress."

She giggled and blushed, then shook it off. She did not like feeling so…

"Did you keep it?" she asked.

"Kept what?" he replied, drinking from his beer.

"Nevermind."

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Daniel had pulled out his blanket and went to bed on the cold floor. A young officer from Barry's team was staring at Jack and Sam beside him. "Psst! Dr. Jackson!" he said. Daniel looked up. "What's the story on those two? Is she single?"

Daniel hated the boy's insinuations. "I can neither confirm nor deny there's anything going on between them," he simple said and went back to sleep.

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"_I should have told her," Jack said when he woke up, talking with Daniel and Janet. _

"_I'm sure she knows, Jack," Daniel replied. _

_Janet nodded. "I know for a fact she knows."_

"_What?" both of them asked. _

"_She said something to me, after you got back from the Rhylonian prison… She was thinking of leaving, Jack. She had so many job offers, I think you were the only reason she stayed. Don't get me wrong. She loved the trip. But she always told me she did it for the company."_

"_How long before--" Jack began. _

_Janet interrupted, not wanting to remember. "Half an hour."_

"_Can I see her?" he asked. Janet hated the look in his eyes. It was impossible to say no. She finally nodded and she and Daniel helped him up, gently, from his bed. _

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"How long before we reach the planet, Major?" Teal'c asked, the next morning.

"24 hours," she whispered, still resting against the bay wall. Jack had fallen asleep, listening to one of her stories about plasma relays and raunchy Canadians, and still rested in a little ball by her feet. She knew it'd take a lot to wake him – spaceships rocked him like a baby – but she whispered nonetheless.

She had a beer in hand, same one as when Daniel had gone to bed. She'd needed time to think. In her other hand, she had a small picture, a Polaroid. She'd been staring at it for quite some time. Daniel saw it and, while the others went to the helm to check calculations and calibrate machines, he sneaked off to sit beside her and took the picture from her hand.

"I'd forgotten about this," he said softly.

"It's one year today," she replied.

He nodded, realizing her mood. "Does he know?"

"Yup. He remembered the dress," she said with a smile.

"Hell, _I_ remember that dress. Who wouldn't?"

She smiled and nudged him with her elbow. "He's asked me to dinner, sort of an anniversary sort of thing… I said yes."

He looked at the photograph. Many had been taken that day but only two of this kind, one for him and one for her. There was much alcohol involved. It wasn't Christmas, but it was close. Jack and Sam's smiling faces crowded the white frame of the picture. A bar was in the background and Daniel bending over, chugging his pitcher of beer. Even Teal'c smiled in the foggy distance.

But there, up close, for a small moment… Jack and Sam had managed to steal a moment, frozen forever.

A little later, they had ended up in a corner of the bar where they had kissed so passionately that Jack had a "broken" lip for almost a month, which, should anyone ask, was caused by a very large biker in a motorcycle contest. She'd never forgotten that day. They'd kissed a few times after, a few times before, but that moment neither forgot. She wasn't sure, because the booze had hit her by then and it could have been a dream, but she was almost positive he walked her home. He woke up on her couch and neither could remember what had happened. Both were sure it was nothing actionable but the doubt still lingered and the red dress was burnt into his mind.

"Just don't go back to that bar," Daniel said, handing her back her photo. "I had the strangest rash after that night."

She laughed so hard, Jack woke up, screaming something about eyeliner and corkscrews. Daniel laughed too but he noticed Sam go sadder just as soon as he woke. She liked him better sleeping. It was a quiet façade.

"Hey guys! Come look at this!" a lieutenant yelled from the captain's chair.

They all walked over to the window of open space, a single star, ever-larger and brighter crept up on them. It called them in, twinkling just for them, burning its final moments _just_ to call them in.

Daniel saw everyone's admiration and took his chance to commemorate it. He sighed and began, "Oh learned men, pry open stars; make visible their secret core."

Sam sighed. "How I wish. Some things just can't be." And she went on with her business.

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"_Colonel!" General Hammond yelled, white-faced and tired of red tape. He caught them in the hallway towards Sam's room. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"_

"_I have to see her, sir!" he said, not looking back. _

"_Dr. Jackson! Dr. Frasier! Stop right now!" Both stopped but didn't turn around. "This man confessed to her murder! There's no way I'm letting him see her."_

"_Please, George. You know me... I have to see her."_

_He stood for a moment, thinking, stomped past them and opened the door. "You damn well better have an excuse. And you two are watching him like a hawk. I'll go distract the Pentagon." _

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"We've got a problem."

Sam looked up. "Are we getting to the field?"

"What field?" Daniel asked.

"There's a meteor field that surrounds the planet. It's too large to circumvent. We have to go through," she replied.

Jack jumped off the Supreme Throne and shouted, "Whoa! Nobody told me about dodging meteors!"

"Don't worry. We'll be fine."

"Oh yea! That's what they always say in horror movies, Sam! 'Don't worry about the axe murderer behind the door. Maybe he's just here for tea.' You're doing the same only there's an entire field of murderers."

"Great analogy," Daniel said in that special way.

"Oh thank you," Jack replied, suddenly cheerful.

Sam smiled. "We're fine, Colonel. I think you'll notice this isn't like any other field."

"Is it made out of candy?" he said in his usual sarcastic manner. "Will they burst like piñatas if we knock into them?"

"Clouds."

Everyone shut up for a moment. They all looked at her with raised eyebrows and contemptuous eyes. "I thought it was made of meteors," Daniel said.

"It _was_. Something's vaporized them."

"What the hell could be strong enough to vaporize meteors but not the planet?"

"That's what I hope to find… in the dome."

Jack went back to his Supreme Throne and said, "You know, you disappoint me, Sam. I was almost looking forward to moonwalking for candy."

She scoffed, shook her head, and went back to her equipment while the others marveled at the small clouds that lit the distant sky, watched over by the great planet and the ominous sun in the distance. As they got closer, it became more apparent what she was talking about. Every cloud seemed like it'd been stretched across space, a great blast sending the streams away from the planet in waves.

"And you're sure they were once meteors?" Daniel asked.

"Positive," Sam replied.

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"_Sam?" he whispered, walking into the room. Daniel helped him near her while Janet found him a stool to sit beside her, then both moved to the back of the room where they could watch but not hear. _

"_Sammy, I'm so sorry… I'm sorry I couldn't get there in time," he began softly, taking her limp hand in his. "I dreamt I'd danced with you last night, at the bar. We were the only ones there. You wore the red dress. You told me you'd forgiven me, and then you burst into flames."_

"_Jack, we should hurry," Daniel said from the wall._

"_Whatever happens—"_

"_Jack—" Janet interrupted. He didn't notice._

_He leaned in to whisper in her ear, far above the beeping of her heart on the machines, caressing her hair back. "Know that I kept it. I kept the picture."_

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"We're almost there," Barry announced some time later.

Sam did not seem pleased. "What troubles you, Major Carter," Teal'c asked.

"The usual crap, Teal'c," she said with a heavy sigh, sitting down atop one of the large cases of weapons. He sat across from her, inspecting them. "The whole opening Pandora's Box thing. What if we don't want to find what's inside?"

"What ensued this sudden train of thought?"

"It's not sudden. It's just getting closer. I may actually have to open it."

"Will that be difficult?"

"No no. It's just… I've been looking forward to this place for so long. What if I get there and I get inside and it's just empty?"

He raised an eyebrow. He figured there was hidden meaning but didn't question it. He shot Daniel a look of trouble but she didn't catch it. "What if it isn't?"

"I might not want to leave. And that's an even greater crime."

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_The airmen came crashing through the doors to drag him out. Daniel and Janet couldn't do a thing. They were pinned to the wall._

_Hammond came in. "I'm sorry, Jack," he said. "The Pentagon's demanding I put you under arrest pending an investigation."_

_Jack looked stern and focused. "There's no need. I'll tell you everything you need to know."_

_A voice came from behind the general. "No, Colonel. You'll tell us everything that happened."_

_Jack instantly winced and growled, "Kinsey..."_

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**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**--**What's going to happen in half an hour?

--If Jack's caught up with Kinsey, will he get to say goodbye?

--What's inside the great dome and why is Sam afraid?

--What destroyed the meteor field?

--Is Sam dead?

--Did Jack really do this to her? Or is he just guilty?

--What the hell happened on that planet?

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